Universum considering lawsuit!

After today’s hearing by the WBA, Universum Box-Promotion has issued the following statement about the events in Helsinki:

Universum Box-Promotion has presented the WBA with medical proof that Ruslan Chagaev does not have the infectious disease hepatitis, but only a hepatitis antigen (a substance that prompts the generation of antibodies and can cause an immune response). Ruslan Chagaev’s blood values have been examined for many years regularly — by measuring methods which are substantially more sensitive than that of the Finnish lab which carried out the blood test that the organizers used to support the refusal to fight.

Universum also provided the WBA with evidence that Ruslan Chagaev’s blood values are unchanged for many years and are safe. They are invariably below the international standard from which the hepatitis disease is considered infectious. Ruslan Chagaev’s current blood values also correspond to those which he had in the first fight against Nikolai Valuev in April 2007. The fight at that time was promoted by Sauerland Event under the supervision of the Austrian Federation in Stuttgart and if there was any doubt about these blood values, it would have been mentioned then. Therefore, today, like the first time, there is no reason to call off the fight.

The Finnish Federation explained in today’s hearing that they have not prohibited the fight, but wanted Nikolai Valuev to agree to a passive protective inoculation (immunglobuline) within 24 hours of the fight. A decision from Valuev was not communicated.

Against this background, Universum Box-Promotion reserves the right to take legal steps.

The results and evaluation of Chagaev’s physician Dr. Michael Ehnert were confirmed by the independent Hamburg Zentrum für Infektiologie (IfI) and the doctor of the German Federation (BDB) Prof. Walter Wagner. Ehnert: In each of the analyses carried out so far, using highly sensitive quantitative molecular biological testing for HBV circulierende viruses by PCR (polymerase chain reaction), showed that there is no viraemia (viral load in the blood). In all tests, including the latest in Helsinki, HBV-DNA was below the detection limit. Therefore it’s clearly demonstrated that the hepatitis B that Ruslan Chagaev recovered from in 2006 is currently not identified as infectious. There is definitely no danger for him or his opponents.

World champion Ruslan Chagaev, who attended the hearing, said: “I’m healthy. I have no doctor attesting to any danger of infection. So I would box Valuev today, tomorrow or whenever. I’m very disappointed and can’t understand this decision. I’m fit and ready.”

Dietmar Poszwa, a member of the Universum management: “We have the impression that someone here wants to get the world champion Ruslan Chagaev out of the way. Since 2006 nobody has been interested in this subject. Now, of all of a sudden, the issue arises immediately before the fight. But we are still ready to box. Ruslan is and remains the WBA heavyweight world champion.“